CONTEXTUALIZING PRINCIPLES OF CHAOS THEORY IN AFRICAN HUMANITIES: READING THE 'BUTTERFLY EFFECT' IN DEON MEYER'S FEVER

The aim of this study is to implement the sensitivity to initial conditions, a principle of
chaos theory. It entails that a small-scale fever can quickly become a large-scale
pandemics. Its objective is to make a literary appropriation of experimental sciences. The
theoretical framework of this reflection is chaos theory: scientific theory which holds that
behind the façade of order lies a degree of disorder. Specifically to this work, the
‘Butterfly Effect’ supposes first the exploration of the initial health condition of Willem
Storm, describing a state of perfect healthiness. Second, the work focuses on the outbreak
of a fever indicating a small disturbance in the initial condition. Third, the reflection
shows how, through convection and flow, the small fever erupting in Africa quickly
becomes a global plague.